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Wrongly Convicted Database Record
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Charge: |
Attempted Murder |
Sentence: |
Life Imprisonment plus 8 years |
Years Imprisoned: |
12 |
Year Crime: |
1990 |
Year Convicted: |
1991 |
Year Cleared: |
2002 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
California |
County or Region of Crime: |
Los Angeles |
City of Crime: |
Lynwood |
Result: |
Judicially Exonerated |
Summary of Case: |
"Jesus Avila was wrongly convicted in 1991 of attempted murder with the use of a firearm at a wedding party in Los Angeles on August 19, 1990. Jesus' brother Ernesto admitted being the shooter, but Avila's lawyer didn't investigate or introduce evidence during Avila's trial implicating Ernesto. After his conviction by a jury Avila was sentenced to life in prison plus 8 years. Avila's conviction was affirmed by the California Court of Appeal on April 7, 1993. Avila then filed a state habeas petition that alleged his lawyer provided ineffective assistance of counsel for failing to investigate and introduce exculpatory evidence during his trial. After Avila's state habeas was denied he filed a federal habeas corpus petition. The U.S. District Court judge denied Avila's petition. He appealed. On July 22, 2002 the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal reversed the District Court's order and granted Avila's federal habeas corpus petition, and vacated his conviction. The Court's ruling stated: " We hold that Jesus's trial counsel provided ineffective assistance of counsel because he failed to investigate and introduce evidence that would have raised a reasonable doubt about Jesus's guilt, and therefore reverse and remand this case to the district court with directions to issue the writ of habeas corpus unless California retries the defendant within 90 days." (Avila v. Galaza, 297 F. 3d 911 (9th Cir. 2002) The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office declined to retry Avila, and the DA's motion to dismiss the charges was granted." |
Conviction Caused By: |
Perjurious prosecution witness |
Innocence Proved By: |
"On July 22, 2002 the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal reversed the District Court's order and granted Avila's federal habeas corpus petition, and vacated his conviction. The Court's ruling stated: " We hold that Jesus's trial counsel provided ineffective assistance of counsel because he failed to investigate and introduce evidence that would have raised a reasonable doubt about Jesus's guilt, and therefore reverse and remand this case to the district court with directions to issue the writ of habeas corpus unless California retries the defendant within 90 days." (Avila v. Galaza, 297 F. 3d 911 (9th Cir. 2002) The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office declined to retry Avila, and the DA's motion to dismiss the charges was granted." |
Defendant Aided By: |
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Compensation Awarded: |
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Was Perpetrator Identified? |
Yes |
Age When Imprisoned: |
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Age When Released: |
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Sex: |
Male |
Skin/Ethnicity: |
Hispanic |
Information Source 1: |
"Lawyer’s Failure to Probe Alternate Suspect Held Ineffective Assistance, Kenneth Ofgang, Metropolitan News-Enterprise, Los Angeles, July 23, 2002, pg. 1" |
Information Location 1: |
http://www.metnews.com/articles/avil072302.htm |
Information Source 2: |
"Avila v. Galaza, 297 F. 3d 911 (9th Circuit 2002) (Granting federal habeas corpus petition.)" |
Information Location 2: |
"https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=8146618856134484981&q=Avila+v.+Galaza,+01-55149+(9th+Cir.+2002)&hl=en&as_sdt=6,48" |
Information Source 3: |
"Man Ordered Freed or Retried After 10 Years, By Henry Weinstein, Los Angeles Times, July 23, 2002" |
Information Location 3: |
http://www.truthinjustice.org/jesus-avila.htm |
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Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org